We were so excited to go camping for the first time in a lllooonnnggg time! We had to do some schedule shuffling due to Evan's baseball season, but we finally got to head up to Traverse City for a couple nights. We'd never been to this city or campground so it was fun to explore a bit, and we're excited to go back to continue exploring.
our camp site
I think I got this hammock as a birthday present in 2019, and didn't get to try it out until now. We all really enjoyed this hammock. So comfy.
The Grand Traverse Bay:
the beach access from Traverse City State Park
The pedestrian walkway from the campsite to beach.
The weather did not cooperate, sadly, but we made the best of it. We went to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Part of the park is the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, so we spent some time driving this beautiful landscape. Due to rain, we ate our picnic in the car.
Dune Overlook
This is the Lake Michigan Overlook. Instead it looks like the end of the earth. I was a little bummed not to see the lake or the big dune, but this view of it was very interesting and memorable. We definitely want to go back to check it out when the weather is more clear.
Another part of the park is this dune climb spot.
We had a lot of fun and got some exercise.
The boys raced up more quickly than Burke and me. This dune area is so vast that pictures don't truly capture.
I finally got to the top. Behind Ryan, you can continue hiking the dune toward Lake Michigan. Someday, I'd love to check that out.
top of the dune, with Glen Lake in the background
Boys are getting ready to run down the dune. Burke was at the bottom to video the run.
Phew... They made it down safely.
You may not be surprised that Evan went up and down many times.
Ryan recovering near the bottom after all the climbing and running.
VAST
Another park stop is the Glen Haven Historical Village. We didn't go in any of them, but it was a cool looking cluster of buildings. Interesting to think of little villages popping up along the lake before modern conveniences changed the lake culture. This village is on Sleeping Bear Bay. This body of water is so clear, and the beach had black, magnetite sand. We were trying to see the Manitou Islands from this part, which are part of the sad Sleeping Bear legend. Alas, we did not have great visibility.
Ryan is wearing his souvenir Sleeping Bear pin.
After that we went to The Village at Grand Traverse Commons. If it looks like a medical building, that's because it was. This sprawling campus used to serves as one of Michigan's three mental asylums. It operated for about 100 years, and only closed down in the 1980s with the increase use of pharmaceutical therapies for mental illnesses. The buildings are becoming dilapidated, and a developer bought them. They are being turned into residences, shops, and restaurants. I found this place fascinating, and found it on a list of off-the-beaten-path must sees in the area. I think we're all glad we spent a little time there.
One of the shops had items made with alpaca fur. Evan noticed that, and requested we go in. That's where they spotted this guy, later named Al. He is crazy soft, like your touch sense does not detect that you're touching anything. This souvenir is right of their alley.
When we got back to the campsite, the sun was out for a bit, so we took that opportunity to head to the beach for an evening swim. They boys wanted to swim. Burke and I observed. [They spent a surprisingly long time cracking themselves up pretending they were projectile pooping out rocks. Smh...]
After dinner, the rain kicked up again. The boys wanted to play Uno, so we played under the canopy tent with rain as background noise. It was lovely.
They were tuckered out, and fell asleep quickly that night.
